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NASA Discovers TRAPPIST-1, a System of 7 Earth-Like Exoplanets

Image Source: NASA

In its latest press conference, NASA took the entire world by surprise when the American premier space agency announced the discovery of seven earth-like planets, Trappist-1. It basically represents a system where seven planets almost the size of the planet Earth are located just outside the solar system. These planets are also called Exoplanets.

NASA astronauts have confirmed that these planets are rocky in nature with close proximity to stars. The scientists have discovered TRAPPIST-1 (Transiting Planets and Planetesimals Small Telescope) are red dwarf having cooler atmosphere inside.

The TRAPPIST-1 is a series of 7 earth-sized exoplanets. All seven of the TRAPPIST-1 planetary orbits are closer to their host star. The system is located some 40-light years (235 trillion miles) away from Earth. These 7 planetary bodies are called exoplanets because of their location outside our solar system. TRAPPIST-1 planets are rocky with mountainous terrains. Scientists are now probing if there is a possibility of the presence of water or any other liquid inside TRAPPIST-1.

NASA is now set to launch its new Webb telescope next year, scientists are even more eager to use a specialized instrument for the purpose of detecting the chemical elements like water, oxygen, ozone and other substance from these exoplanets.

“The seven wonders of TRAPPIST-1 are the first Earth-size planets that have been found orbiting this kind of star,” said Michael Gillon, principal investigator at the University of Liege, Belgium.

It is for the first time the scientists have successfully found seven planets having similar structures and characteristics almost similar to earth. Surprisingly, scientists are having firm believe in the existence of water and life in these planets. However, no confirmation has come out as yet.

According to Sarah Ballard, an MIT researcher, “If one of these planets hosts life and the adjacent one doesn’t, why not?” stated Sarah Ballard. Exactly the same goes with Earth and Venus. While, Earth support life, its nearest planet Venus doesn’t.

However, it’s still too early to say whether all these exoplanets would support life. Actually, some of them release off as much UV rays that the Sun does. And this clearly means that it won’t support the life of any form. The temperature at these exoplanets is expected to be somewhere around 0 to 100 degree Celsius.

Amaury Triaud, a scientist at the University of Cambridge said, “We have made a crucial step towards finding life out there. Up to now, I don’t think we have had the right planets to find out. Now we have the right target.”